The Alpha and His Ace: Alpha and His Ace, #1

By Ana J. Phoenix

Young, handsome, and the alpha of his wolf pack, Brandon has never had trouble finding men to have sex with. Only one thing is missing--his mate. Brandon can’t find him, and the rest of his pack is growing concerned about his lack of partner. An alpha needs a strong partner.

Things seem to be looking up when he finally finds his fated companion in Aidan. One problem—Aidan’s asexual, and Brandon’s now confused. Who doesn’t want sex? Aidan, that’s who. And Brandon hasn’t got a clue how to make someone love him without it.

It's going to take some serious self-examination, acceptance, and some really good cake for Brandon to make his way into Aidan’s heart.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Ana J. Phoenix
• Release date: Jun 12, 2015
• ISBN: 9781513050720

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Copyright June 2015 by Ana J. Phoenix

Cover Art by Ana J. Phoenix

Contact at [e-mail]

First published as part of the Love is an Open Road anthologies (Don’t Read in the Closet 2015, at MMRomanceGroup.com). Original story prompt:

Dear Author,

I am an Alpha werewolf who has been looking for his mate. Until I find him (yes, I am gay, my pack is pretty much open to sexuality), I am allowed to have fun with other guys. I’m known as a player but that’s okay because once I find my mate, my wolf and I will be truly monogamous.

Then I find him. My mate (You can decide how we meet— make it meet-cute type). But then my mate says that he is an asexual. What the hell? What does he mean, asexual? Does he mean that I cannot have sex with him ever? That he will never enjoy sex with me? How can I make him fall in love with me then?

But my wolf and I are determined to romance my mate; even if I have to join AVEN forum (which I thought at first as forum for AVIAN shifters) and talk around to couples with asexual lovers for tips. Because I will have my HEA with him, right, dear author?

Thank you.

Sincerely,

Ami

Acknowledgements

Quotes in Chapter Three taken with permission from AVEN (The Asexuality Visibility and Education Network).

Additional thanks go out to my betas, Lisa J and Tala, for their help, and Ami, for the fun prompt. Rock on, girls. Also to the editors and mods on the event team for volunteering their time and effort. You guys are amazing.

The Alpha and His Ace

By Ana J. Phoenix

Chapter One

You’re going to the club again?

Yeah. I turned to face my mother, who stood in the door way to my room as I put on my favorite cologne. Humans had a weak sense of smell, but this stuff helped.

That’s the third time this week.

I nodded. No point in denying the truth. Gotta have fun while I can, right?

She shook her head at me. Brandon…

It’s fine, Mom. I really didn’t need to hear her tell me how she wished I’d found my mate already. I knew when she did it, it was only because she was worried about me. Unlike some of the guys in my pack who thought it was hilarious I was past twenty-five and couldn’t seem to find my partner. Of course, they never said that when I was around to hear it. They didn’t have the guts. But word traveled. A good leader needed a good mate at his side. Common knowledge.

You’re smokin’, my mom said, as if she could read my thoughts and wanted to redirect them. But she was right. I grinned at myself in the mirror. Maybe I couldn’t find my mate, but I’d never had trouble finding lays. Mom patted my shoulder. Now go out there and cause some trouble. My mom. Always there to get me ready for battle.

I’ll find him, Mom.

You’ll find him when you find him, darling. You can’t force fate.

You never know until you try. With those words, I threw on a light jacket and headed out into the summer night.

****

A few hours later, things weren’t looking good. I’d spent enough time at every gay club or hangout in the city to know my mate wasn’t at any of them. As a last resort, I started visiting the regular bars too. Who knew? Maybe my mate was closeted. Maybe he thought he was straight. Not a problem. A few minutes in bed with me would prove him wrong.

Provided I found him.

There were two bars in my vicinity. The Crow’s Bar and The Last Straw. The former sounded too much like a meeting place for filthy avian shifters, so I grasped at The Last Straw. Sounded fitting enough.

Problem was, once I entered straight-people places, people thought I was straight. Case in point, I’d spent barely five minutes sipping on a cheap beer before a girl in a low cut red dress approached me. Swaying her hips in a way that I guessed was supposed to be sexy, but really made her look as if she was going to fall flat on her face at any second.

When she stumbled in front of me, I stood and reached out to steady her. Are you okay?

I’m Ruby.

Not what I’d asked, but okay. I could answer the other question for myself; her scent gave her away. She’d had too much to drink to be fine.

You on your own? I glanced around the bar to see if anyone was looking for her, but it didn’t seem so.

She giggled and grabbed my shirt. I'm not alone now, Bright Eyes.

I should have brushed her off; she wasn't my problem just because she'd come on to me. But I knew once I let her go, she'd hang on to the next guy—who might just be enough of a scumbag to take advantage of her. Do you live far from here? I asked.

You wanna come home with me?

Yeah, sure. I was ready to call it a night anyway. Might as well take her to her house before I went home to mine.

She gave me a smile, and led me out of the bar. As it turned

Reviews for The Alpha and His Ace

[Shelby · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

When I picked this up, I was expecting something simple and fluffy. What I was not expecting was how real it got. When an asexual and an allosexual are in a relationship, communication and is key, and the majority of the novel is the bumpy road to understanding and these two characters dealing with the consequences of misunderstanding, and trying not to do the wrong thing to hurt each other or ruin the relationship. But at the same time, you get where both of them are coming from. Aidan is used to people giving him trouble for being asexual, so when Brandon keeps trying to win him over, he has a hard time believing he'll stick around and doesn't take his interest too seriously, though he'd like to believe Brandon will accept him. Both of them are at fault for the miscommunication issues they experience throughout, and I enjoyed the resolution.

Unfortunately, the other aspects of the story weren't very fleshed out. I'm personally not a big fan of the whole 'mate' relationship, but that's the story this is, so I couldn't fault it for that.

[Meghan · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

This book was so good! It was so romantic and cute. It was very empathetic as well. It was nice and sweet and unique.